Puppet Master
by lrhaboggle
Summary: AU in which June's character is far darker and crueler.


June's eyes were deadly green slits. She observed the scene around her with interest. Currently, she was standing in a gaggle of girls all about the same age as she was. In addition, all of them, June included, wore blue dresses framed with white lace. It was a uniform of some kind. On every arm was a red circlet of cloth with golden angel wings upon them. They were all applicants of Heaven, awaiting instructions from their leader and king, God. Among this group was a brunette who seemed to be particularly shy. June knew this because, while all the others were chattering excitedly with each other, this girl was standing off to the side. Her eyes did convey a sense of wonder, but she wasn't speaking and seemed cautious around all the others. At last, one other applicant brushed against the shy brunette's chest and the girl jumped like she had been stung.

"Sorry about that!" the guilty applicant patted the brunette on the arm.

"Oh, it's ok," the brunette mumbled back, staring up at the girl in wonderment. After that little exchange, the guilty applicant skipped away and forgot all about the brunette in seconds. The brunette, however, continued to stare after her. Interesting. And June wasn't sure if the girl knew this, but she had since placed her hand on her chest, right where the other applicant had brushed her. Very interesting.

"Hi," June walked over to the shy applicant with a pretense of nervousness. "Do you know when this thing begins?" she asked.

"Oh! Uh, no. No I don't," the shy girl stuttered in reply. June fought back a grin as she tried to keep up her own act of being scared and shy.

"I'm June Freeman," she said, trying to make her voice sound shaky and timid.

"I'm Cora Stein," the brunette replied, ducking her head. She offered her hand shyly and June shook it gently.

"That's a pretty name," June said.

"Really?" Cora asked her, open-mouthed, but then she realized how silly she might've looked. She straightened up at once and corrected herself. "I mean, I mean, thanks. Uhh, thank you very much. I like your name too!"

"Thanks," June pretended to look down shyly. Cora smiled at her, but this time, it wasn't laced with nerves. Instead, June had succeeded in putting the brunette at ease by pretending to be just as shy as she was. The two were best friends from that moment on.

Over the next few months, Cora proved to be a valuable ally. Despite her outward awkwardness, a true beauty, allure and intelligence lay beneath. Best of all, though, it was all for June to control. See, Cora possessed a great many traits that would prove useful to her in life but she didn't know it. Her esteem was so low that she had a hard time understanding just how influential she could be. June, however, saw it. She knew exactly what Cora could be capable of the right hands. And who better to help Cora use those gifts than June herself? It wasn't like anyone else was willing to give the brunette a chance. So June decided to pick up the slack and swoop in and take Cora for her own. It wasn't selfish! It was opportunistic. Besides, Cora had never given her any grief for it. On the contrary, June could practically _feel_ Cora falling in love with her. Every loaded glance, every flinching touch, all of it! Cora's infatuation was even more obvious the fact that God was in charge of Heaven and, given all the propaganda going on about God, that was saying a lot.

So June used Cora. She used Cora for a good many things too. She used Cora for pleasure, entertainment, and power. Once again, Cora was very smart and very alluring. June took full advantage of it, calling upon Cora whenever she got in trouble for something. Without fail, Cora had helped get her out every single time. Now, perhaps this "puppet-master" shtick was cruel, but Cora didn't mind and June wasn't entirely dismissive of the brunette. June actually did harbor some feelings for Cora as well. In fact, the whole reason either of them slept together at all was because June decided it was high time to repay Cora for all of her loyal service and she knew just what Cora wanted…

June initiated it all by crawling into bed beside Cora one night.

"Hey Cora!" she whispered as she cuddled up with the brunette.

"June! What are you doing?" Cora asked in reply, alarm evident in her soft voice. "This is my bed! Yours is over there!"

"I just wanted to cuddle. It's cold out," June said innocently, enjoying Cora's discomfort. Slowly then, June wrapped her arms around Cora and when Cora did nothing to stop her, June moved closer and closer in. At last, she dared press a kiss to Cora's lips. Cora let out a soft cry of surprise, but she didn't speak. Instead, she looked at June and June did her best to look longing. It must've worked because soon, Cora's lips were on hers… The two fell asleep in each other's arms awhile later, still panting heavily.

From then on, Cora's devotion doubled and June was able to continue her role as a puppet master with all the more confidence. But then things changed and June's need for Cora dropped significantly. At one point, June and Cora ended up meeting God's top man, the Agent. It was clear that he had fallen for June the moment he laid eyes on her and June had to admit that the feeling might've been mutual. Agent was a pretty handsome fellow, after all, and even though their first meeting wasn't exactly the most romantic, the sparks flew. A secret affair began soon after and Cora found herself being replaced, both as friend, confidant and lover. June didn't care how much this hurt the brunette, though, because as much as June loved Cora, it was only in relation to her. June loved Cora because of what Cora could do for her. June loved herself more and she saw Agent as a more useful lover. Cora was only an applicant but Agent was Heaven's second in command. Who would be more useful?

"You're jealous!" June said gleefully after Cora finished hinting that June should break up with Agent.

"I'm not jealous!" Cora denied, but the lie was as plain as the nose on her face. As cruel as it was, June found it quite funny.

"Cora, the green-eyed monster!" June had called her.

"He's using you!" Cora argued back, trying to ignore how much it hurt to see how little June actually cared for her.

"And I'm using him!" June flicked her hand dismissively. "What's wrong with that? Besides, we like each other!"

"You're going to get yourself in trouble talking like that," Cora warned, in total disbelief at how easily June was taking all of this. Seriously, how could the blond profess to love anyone and then treat their feelings and the relationship she shared with them in such a trivial light? Ok, so maybe Cora was jealous of Agent, but in this moment she couldn't help but pity the man. Cora didn't think he knew what kind of woman he was dealing with when he started eloping with June and it wasn't really fair to him any more than it was fair to Cora. June was ruining both of them.

"Maybe I just want you to come and rescue me from my evil ways," June taunted, trying to arouse Cora further.

"Don't toy with me, June!" Cora snapped, finally brushing her off. June reared back in surprise and amusement. Was she seeing a new side of Cora? How sexy! But when June did manage to see Cora's face, she saw real envy and sorrow there. No, Cora was still Cora. She was still afraid of losing June. It made June feel so special! But at last, the fun came to an end and June sauntered away, leaving Cora alone for the night again.

On June went, playing puppet master twice over, but eventually, her heartless deeds finally caught up to her. It happened one night when she decided to lure Agent out on a night of fun. One of the places she wanted to go was the banned book section in Heaven's library. That was where Agent drew the line. As tolerant and pliable as he'd been, this was the last straw. It was the first time June ever had a real argument with him. She did manage to steal his keys and break into the library and she even secured one of the banned books, but that was where it all came down.

"See?" she bragged as she took the book out of its chains and off of its pedestal. Agent only shook his head slowly, sadly. June figured it was his way of coping with being wrong and she began to read. She hadn't gotten more than a few sentences in, however, before sirens went off.

"What do we do?" June asked. For the first time ever, genuine fear crept into her voice. She was no longer in control. She was no longer the puppet master. She had finally been defeated. Despite knowing it was over, though, she pleaded with Agent, begging for his aid.

"Sorry Dollface," was all he would say to her and, with that, he turned away and left her to be punished.

"Don't leave me!" she sobbed after him. Her pleas were genuine. "Please, don't go!" but he didn't turn back and the last June ever saw of him was of his handsome figure returning to Heaven's elevator while she was stuck back here in the library, surrounded on all sides by avenging angels.

One angel, however, had not come for justice. Instead, the moment she heard the sirens and realized that June was not amongst the brood, she knew at once what had happened and had, of course, come running.

"Cora!" June croaked out the name as, through her violent injuries, the brunette with the bright blue eyes came bounding in, every applicant running in after her. The moment Cora realized what she was looking at, she gave a wounded gasp. For all the emotional abuse she'd suffered from June, it still wasn't easy seeing the first and only person to see her as valuable being treated so horrifically.

"JUNE!" the pain in her voice was palpable but, as every angel including June noticed, she made no effort in saving the blond. June even looked up at her with big green eyes, pleading silently, but Cora wouldn't meet her eyes. Instead, she turned again, sobbing softly into her hand as June was dragged away from her and to the elevator, but she would not being going to the floor Agent had gone to.

Years later, June had become one of Hell's most revered demons. She had also renamed herself Painted Doll as a sick reminder of what had been done to her and what kind of revenge she still needed to exact before she could rest. Despite her name, Doll still liked to think of _herself_ as a puppet master, her cruelty and conniving as strong as ever despite being bested back in Heaven. As angry as this memory made her, her new job in the Devil's Carnival made up for it because now, Doll's cunning and manipulative nature had become her strongest weapon. It became her livelihood, and pulling the strings had always been her favorite pastime. This time, she was acting as a puppet master for every poor fool who crossed her path. She decided their destiny and destination based upon the information, or lies, that she fed them. It was still as fun as it ever was. The only difference was that she manipulated for fun now. Back in the day, it had been for power. And only power! Doll had since convinced herself that, in the same way Agent and Cora seemed to have never loved her, she had never loved them. She convinced herself everyday that her feelings for both of them were only part of her act and, as the years passed, she began to believe this.

Of course, Doll wasn't above love. Actually, she was currently in a relationship with Hell's bad boy: Scorpion. It was hard to say why they were a couple, but Doll always chalked it up to the fact that they were both rebellious, aloof, and enjoyed manipulation. He was a puppet master like she was. That, she decided, was what started their relationship and made it strong. She hardly minded when he flirted with other people, sinner or carnie, because she did the same. Somehow they both knew, in their twisted and loving way, that they would always get back together in the end, no matter who else may come between them for however long. This was so different from June's relationships with Agent and Cora, which had been built with her desire to keep them both as close as possible, knowing that if she ever lost their trust, she would lose them as well. Scorpion wasn't like that. Doll didn't care if he trusted her or not. And he always came back to her without fail. She never had to play a certain role to ensure his loyalty. So this unhealthy yet enduring love continued. Doll actually began to enjoy herself again, but the thirst for vengeance never truly left her. She vowed to make Agent and Cora pay for their betrayal and somehow she knew it would come someday. She just had to wait.

 **AN: This is a slight AU which imagines that June was sincerely evil and not just selfish. You can argue June's character either way but I always saw her as someone who was manipulative but not out of evil. It's like asking, "Is cheating dishonest, or resourceful?" If you asked canon-June, she'd say it was resourceful. If you ask this story's June, she would say it's dishonest. In this particular story, I tried to write her as a real villain. Here, she knows she's being manipulative and overly cruel, even to the point of being emotionally abusive, but this time, she relishes it. Unlike her canon counterpart, this June knows what she's doing is wrong but likes it. IMO, canon June doesn't see the harm in mind games. This one does and enjoys them for that reason. And yes, this story is written with the idea that Cora and June met in Heaven instead of on Earth and June uses Cora's own insecurities to make her emotionally dependent upon her.**


End file.
